[At the 2006 Ministry of Education (MOE) Work Plan Seminar, Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Minister for Education, announced several initiatives to take the education system forward in building an ability-driven education system. One of the key announcements he made was the removal of the EM3 stream.
Starting from the 2008 Primary 5 cohort, students under Subject-based Banding will be able to read a mix of Standard or Foundation subjects depending on their aptitude in each subject.
According to the MOE, the removal of the EM3 stream and the introduction of Subject-based Banding have many benefits. Firstly, it would benefit students who, under the current arrangement, would have been placed in EM3 stream. These students would have the opportunity to read subjects in which they are strong in with other students at the Standard level, instead of being lumped under EM3 completely.
Secondly, Subject-based banding would also benefit students who are under the merged EM1-EM2 stream but are weak in some subjects at the Standard level. They are given the option to take their weak subjects at the Foundation level to have a better grasp of the fundamentals before progressing on to secondary school.
Schools will advise students to offer Foundation level subjects when they face difficulties in two or more subjects. Schools will also advise students on their subject combinations best suited to their abilities at the end of Primary 4. Parents and students will then choose the combinations they prefer.]

Abridged from: